Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in Religion & Spirituality

In Taken No More: Protect Your Children Against Traffickers and Cults, Robin Boyle-Laisure warns parents, caregivers, and guardians about the dangers of human trafficking and cults. She offers tips on how to talk to children of any age to make sure they are aware and on guard but not sheltered, and includes an entire chapter devoted to online predatory behavior due to its ever-rising influence. Boyle-Laisure also describes the progressive stages of targeting, grooming, recruitment, coercion, and control and provides warning signs that a child is being groomed.

In this sweeping history, Ilan Stavans explores the way humans have evolved in their conception of the divine, from an animistic view defined by spirituality to Greek myths and the Aztec pantheon, onward to the development on monotheism as a powerful religion in the Middle East that was crystallized in the biblical narrative. He meditates on what type of divine presences coexist in the Hebrew Bible and how these entities take bifurcating paths in Christianity and Islam.

Mark Pegg offers a synthesis of the most innovative scholarship on the Middle Ages of the last thirty years. Interweaving the history of Muslims with the histories of Christians and Jews, the scholarly history is propelled by a narrative of the relationship of the human and the divine within individuals and their societies between 950 and 1550. In displaying the history of the Middle Ages to be no less than a history of the formation of Western culture, Pegg offers a rethinking of what it means to talk about the medieval world that is at once vital, compelling, and necessary.

Is faith in Jesus enough for salvation? Perhaps, says Matthew Bates, but we're missing pieces of the gospel. The biblical gospel can never change. Yet our understanding of the gospel must change. The church needs an allegiance shift. Popular pastoral resources on the gospel are causing widespread confusion. Bates shows that the biblical gospel is different, fuller, and more beautiful than we have been led to believe. He explains that saving faith doesn't come through trust in Jesus' death on the cross alone but through allegiance to Christ the king.

Esteemed history professor Thomas F. Madden explores the reformations that swept across Christendom in the 16th and 17th centuries. The impact of these reforms affected government, popes, and kings as well as commoners, for at this time the Church was an omnipresent part of European identity-and the import of Church reforms on every level of life at this time simply cannot be underestimated.

Winner of the John W. Kluge Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Human Sciences, Jaroslav Pelikan is Professor Emeritus of history at Yale University and past president of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. This examination of the history of the Bible reflects half a century of study and research by the author. In Whose Bible Is It?, Pelikan traces the transformation of the Bible from its earliest oral traditions to its modern forms.

Blacklisted in the photography business when one of her shots causes a scandal, but desperate to somehow continue in the profession, Avery Tate answered an ad for a crime scene photographer. She fully expected to be laughed at, but crime scene analyst Parker Mitchell hired her outright - taking time to teach her the trade. Now she's half in love with the man, half terrified to even acknowledge her feelings, and completely hooked on the job - until the next crime hits too close to home.

Leadership in Christian Perspective brings the best of leadership theory and research together with biblical reflection and examples of leadership in action. Organized around "nine empowering practices," it integrates solid research in leadership studies with biblical and theological reflection on the leadership ideas that are most compatible with Christian faith, making it an important resource for professors and students in leadership and pastoral theology courses, pastors and church leaders, and Christian business leaders.

Surely, Christmas in the distant past must have been different from the one we know today. But how different? You’re about to find out. The Christmases of long, long ago were a merry mess of odd superstitions, dangerous games, and overindulgences that lasted from Christmas Day until Epiphany twelve days later. The “Christmas season” of earlier times was not the period from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day that Americans experience today, but rather a no-holds-barred bacchanalia following the austerity period of Advent.

Exciting start of a brand-new series by a contemporary romance fan favorite. After a devastating heartbreak three years ago, genealogist and historical village owner Nora Bradford has decided that burying her nose in her work and her books is far safer than romance in the here and now. Unlike Nora, former Navy SEAL and Medal of Honor recipient John Lawson is a modern-day man, usually 100% focused on the present.

In this course, Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman imparts a clear understanding of what the Dead Sea Scrolls are, and even more importantly, what they are not. Indeed, everything about the Scrolls, from their long road to full publication to the haggling over dating and translation, has been shrouded in controversy. In these lectures, Professor Schiffman gives a fascinating explanation of the content of the Scrolls and the times in which the Scrolls were kept.

In this course, objectively delivered by Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman, listeners will engage in a discussion on how that collection came into being and how it was passed down and interpreted throughout the ages. You will sample approaches both traditional and modern, making use of the works of a broad sampling of scholars - ancient, medieval, and modern - to understand the message of the Hebrew Scriptures and the stories they told

Best-selling author, cultural commentator, and popular theologian Christopher West is one of the world's most recognized teachers of John Paul II's Theology of the Body. He specializes in making this teaching accessible to all Christians, with particular attention to evangelicals. As West explains, from beginning to end the Bible tells a story of marriage. It begins with the marriage of man and woman in an earthly paradise and ends with the marriage of Christ and the church in an eternal paradise.

Best-selling author Tracie Peterson sets A Love to Last Forever in the majestic Big Sky country of 1880s Montana. This inspiring romance follows the trials of Beth Gallatin as she longs to put down roots, marry a good man, and raise a family. But just as the flicker of true love unites two hearts, storm clouds from the past roll in to douse what once burned so pure and bright.

Drawing on the wisdom of Pope Francis and the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Austen Ivereigh has written a captivating spiritual guide for our turbulent age. Designed as an eight-day Ignatian retreat, First Belong to God serves as a roadmap to deeper discipleship. It does this by focusing on the three foundational forms of belonging: to God, to creation, and to others. Whether you’re embarking on a solitary spiritual expedition or a journey with like-minded individuals, First Belong to God offers the next best thing to a personal retreat with Pope Francis.

In the first century of its existence, Christianity was both welcomed and vilified throughout the Roman Empire. Many of Christianity's original adherents were martyred. Christians themselves practiced their religion with great diversity, linked as much to local influences as theology. Political intrigue, theological beliefs, and simple misunderstandings created a need for dialogue between the many practitioners of the growing faith.

The Making of Martin Luther takes a provocative look at the intellectual emergence of one of the most original and influential minds of the 16th century. Richard Rex traces how, in a concentrated burst of creative energy in the few years surrounding his excommunication by Pope Leo X in 1521, this lecturer at an obscure German university developed a startling new interpretation of the Christian faith that brought to an end the dominance of the Catholic Church in Europe.

The Holy Spirit empowers every believer not only to proclaim, but also to demonstrate the reality of the good news of the Gospel by living a lifestyle of signs and wonders that puts Jesus on display. As we look for the Holy Spirit's activity happening around us, listen for His voice and respond in obedience, we enable others to encounter the love and power of Jesus through us. How can we overcome the fear of failure and rejection?

The road to launching a successful business can be long and confusing. Where do you start? Should you rent office space or work out of your garage? Should you register as a for-profit or a nonprofit business? How should you handle legal issues that come up? What does it mean to be a "Christian" entrepreneur anyway? Drawing from his work as a legal expert and business coach, Brock Shinen combines practical wisdom and a biblical worldview to help Christians turn their dreams and passions into viable businesses.

Beloved author Sheila Walsh takes you deep into Scripture to answer these questions and more. With great compassion and engaging personal stories, she encourages you to endure the trials of this life by keeping an eye on the glorious reality of your heavenly home.